This Healthy Chili Mac is the perfect pairing of two of my favorite meals: chili and mac and cheese. Made with tons of veggies, lean protein, and it’s gluten-free, too! This is a healthy meal for the whole family!
Happy New Year, friends!
I will confess to a bit of a holiday hangover this week…there is so much to DO around here as my house still looks like a Christmas tornado hit and January is the biggest month of the year on the blog. But I still feel a little unfocused, and I am writing this, I am thinking maybe because the holiday ended midweek? I bet by the time this post goes live, I will be fully back in the game! ?
Anyway, welcome to the first official recipe post of 2019! And friends, it’s a damn good one. This Healthy Instant Pot Chili Mac is puts two of my favorite things on the planet together: chili and mac and cheese.
I actually grew up eating chili with little elbow noodles in it, but that extra layer of melty sharp cheddar cheese really takes this to next level deliciousness. And thanks to the Instant Pot, this Healthy Instant Pot Chili Mac is so freaking quick. Like under 30 minutes, including time to come to pressure thanks to only two minutes of cooktime!
It’s a magic pot!
Check it out:
Healthy Instant Pot Chili Mac Ingredients
This Instant Pot Chili Mac comes together quick and uses lots of pantry staples and spices!
You can use whatever ground protein you like for this recipe, but I was surprised at how delicious it was with ground turkey. And to get the green container up, I added a ton of veggies – onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, and zucchini. If you have picky eaters at home, you can try shredding the veggies to hide them better! As far as beans, I added kidney, but this would be great with black beans or even garbanzo beans. Use what you have. Or leave the beans out for 1/2 less yellow.
And you can’t forget the cheese! I am partial to a very sharp cheddar, but you can sub Monterey jack or whatever cheese you like best.
You can also use my 21 Day Fix Freezable Cheese Sauce
Is this Healthy Instant Pot Chili Mac Gluten Free?
Yes! I used Gluten-free Brown Rice Elbows to keep this Gluten-free. My son also can’t have dairy, so I scoop out his portion before adding the cheese!
I don’t have an Instant Pot? Can I make this Chili Mac on the Stovetop?
Yup! I will add stovetop directions to the recipe card below!
Can I have this Instant Pot Chili Mac on the 21 Day Fix?
Of course! The container counts are in the recipe card!
What are the 21 Day Fix Containers for this recipe?
Guys – this is AMAZING for containers! First of all, it’s a HUGE serving size – roughly two CUPS! And yes, you use 1 1/2 Yellows for this, but if you really want to keep it to one, you can just omit the beans. But you also get 2 1/4 Greens for this meal which is complete insanity! It’s also 1 Red, 1/2-1 Blue (depending on how much cheese you use), 1/2 tsp.
Looking for more Instant Pot Pasta Recipes for the 21 Day Fix? Check these out:
Healthy Instant Pot Baked Ziti | 21 Day Fix Instant Pot Baked Ziti [Gluten-free]
Instant Pot Sausage Broccoli Pasta (21 Day Fix)
Healthy Instant Pot Taco Pasta | The Foodie and the Fix
More Instant Pot Pasta Recipes for the 21 Day Fix | Carrie Elle
Healthy Instant Pot Chili Mac
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 1 lb ground lean turkey or lean ground beef
- 1 onion diced
- 2 bell peppers diced (I used one yellow and one orange)
- 1 small zucchini cut into quarters
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup kidney beans drained and rinsed well
- 1 ½ cups uncooked gluten free elbows
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 14 oz tomato sauce 1 can
- 14 oz mild diced tomatoes with green chilis 1 can
- ⅔ - 1 ⅓ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese if you use 2/3 cup, this is 1/2 blue per serving| if you use 1 1/3 cups, it's 1 blue per serving
- Cilantro for garnish
Instructions
Instant Pot:
- Set Instant Pot to saute and when it’s hot, add in the olive oil, then saute the ground turkey or beef until nearly cooked through.
- Add in onions, bell peppers, and saute for a couple minutes until fragrant and veggies begin to soften. Then add in garlic and zucchini, cooking for an additional minute. Be sure to scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pot and deglaze with a few tablespoons of water or broth (¼ cup for 8 quart) if necessary.
- Mix seasonings and salt into tomato sauce, then set aside.
- Layer beans then pasta over the meat and veggie mixture, but do not mix.
- Top with diced tomatoes, then pour tomato sauce and spices on top. Again, do not mix.
- Set Instant Pot for 3 minutes (if you are using a corn based pasta, do 2 minutes) After cook time, do a quick release.
- When it’s safe to open the lid, give your chili mac a good stir, then add in desired amount of cheddar cheese. Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Stovetop:
- Cook pasta according to the directions on the package.
- In a large pot or dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat and then saute the ground turkey or beef until nearly cooked through.
- Add in onions, bell peppers, and saute for a couple minutes until fragrant and veggies begin to soften. Then add in garlic and zucchini, cooking for an additional minute.
- Mix seasonings and salt into tomato sauce. Add sauce to veggie mixture, along with the beans and diced tomatoes. Cook for 10 minutes to let flavors meld together and the liquid to reduce.
- Finally, stir in pasta and cheese. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy!
Theresa says
My family loved this! Quick, easy, kid friendly meal that we love to have during the week when we are busy and want something warm! Will for sure be making this again!
Nancylynn says
Yes, totally agree!!
Ashley says
I’ve been making this recipe for years and just realized I never commented on here about how much we love it. It’s a regular rotation with my family and we’ve made it for get togethers. It’s always a fave!
Nancylynn says
Thank you Ashley! Making it for when you have company over is the ultimate compliment for a recipe creator!
Chelsea says
Hello- on some of your recipes it says 4 servings like this recipe but no actual serving size. How do I figure out how much a serving is?
Nancylynn says
Hi! Divide the finished product into 4 equal servings – so for this recipe it would be 1/4 of the entire pot of chili Mac.
Melissa A says
LOVE IT!!! I fully understand why we should layer. LOL. I got a little ahead of myself and didn’t read all the way through before, so by the time I saw “layer”, it was too late. Everything worked out okay despite the two “food burn” alerts. All the kids loved it. One to keep in rotation for sure.
Nancylynn says
Whoops! Glad it all worked out, thanks for sticking with the recipe!
kristen says
i love this recipe and have it saved as a favorite! did the calorie count change recently? i have a screenshot with almost half the calories for 2 servings
Nancylynn says
Hi! Thank you for letting us know – we did change recipe cards recently and I took a look at this and yes, it was incorrect! It should be more accurate now. Thank you again.
Kristina Schlappi says
GREAT FLAVOR! Kid friendly, a good way to sneak veggies in without them noticing. My only downfall was the cook time, I followed the recipe to a t but my noodles were crunchy with a 3 minute cook time. I ended up giving it a mix and letting it cook another 3 minutes and it’s much better!
Nancylynn says
Thank you Kristina! Out of curiosity, what kind of noodles were you using?
Carrie says
So yummy! We’re definitely working this one into our regular dinner rotation! The best part is my 2 & 4 year olds gobbled it right up! My 4 year old, per usual with anything new, initially looked it it on his plate and said, “I don’t like this”, to which I responded, “You’ve never had this before, this is my first time ever making it for us, please take a ‘no thank you’ bite.” And what do ya know, my little “picky pants” said “mmmm!” as he took his very first bite, as well as EACH bite thereafter til his entire plate was cleaned. Nancylynn, your recipes are magic. Thanks for making mealtime a much more pleasant experience for us!
Justin says
THIS! THIS RECIPE RIGHT HERE!
I am an avid follower of your recipes and have made many of them. But this is one I have come back to the most (I’ve made it so many times now I’ve just memorized all the ingredients and steps).
This is great because its PERFECT as is, but so easy to adjust based on what you have at home. Different types of beans… more or less meat… even great if I have no cheese to add!
Also a PLUS is that this is sooo perfect for meal prep. Goes into the fridge and reheats in the microwave and almost tastes better than fresh!
Nancylynn says
Thank you so so much for this comment! Impressed with your memorization, too!
LARISSA says
We loooove this recipe (3 yr old and parents)! I don’t always have zucchini on hand, so am wondering if I were to sub in carrots if that would work, cooking time wise? (Not following any of the meal plans) Or maybe I should grate the carrot to get a similar texture to the zucchini?
Nancylynn says
This is a great question! Carrots will definitely work – just maybe chop them on the smaller side and put them in first to saute a couple minutes longer, before adding the onions and peppers. Let us know how it turns out!
Deb Freitag says
My family’s favorite Instant Pot recipe! SO DELICIOUS (and very few dishes)!
Nancylynn says
We love it too! Thank you!
Nicole says
What are the container count for one serving?
Marsha says
Do you know the nutritional breakdown for this? Calories, Fat, Sugar, Carbs? Just started Noom… thank you! It’s delicious!
Nancylynn says
So glad you liked the recipe! I have always suggested myfitnesspal for nutritional breakdowns, but don’t use them on the site. Wish you the best of luck with Noom!
Leslie says
Hey there: did you use dry kidney beans or canned?
Nancylynn says
Canned!
Allison Odneal says
Hello! I love all your recipes and got an instant pot just because of your recipes! When I made this recipe it kept saying “burn food”. I felt like it wasn’t cooking so i opened it and added some water and stirred it. I made it with lean ground beef and whole wheat noodles. I didn’t have burnt bits so didn’t do the water, should I have done water anyways? Also, I assumed when you said to set for 3 mins you meant on high pressure cook.. Is that right?
Nancylynn says
Bummer! All of that sounds ok- some pots are just more temperamental than others. I hope you give it another try!
Chynna Owens says
I am making this right now. I’m not on strict 21 day but also counting calories. How many calories do you think is in a serving of 2 cup?
Nancylynn says
Myfitnesspal is awesome for calorie counts!
Lauren says
Sneaky way to get kiddos to eat extra veggies! So much healthier (and yummier) than our usual chili Mac!
Nancylynn says
YAY!! Thank you!
Tracy NIETERT says
This was delicious! I am just starting the program and thought I would be bored eating the same things over and over again. You’ve added variety. I can’t wait to try more!
Nancylynn says
This is the BEST. <3
Jackie says
Delicious!! My kids LOVED it and I loved sneaking them a bunch of veggies!! Thanks!!
Samantha Corbett says
This is amazing! I had to look twice to make sure that the serving size was actually two cups. Very filling! Thanks for this recipe Nancylynn!
Nancylynn says
This makes me SOOOO happy!! Thank you for the review and rating – means everything!!
Jessica says
Nancy! This is great. 🙂 Quick question – could this be prepared in advance and then frozen? What method would you suggest? How would you reheat?
Nancylynn says
Yes! I would cook it through and them store it in ziplock bags flat in your freezer. I would reheat on the saute mode after thawing in the fridge or by placing the ziplock bag in a bowl of water for 30 minutes!
Claudia Matthew says
How would this work for 2B?
Nancylynn says
This is an excellent lunch option for the 2B Mindset!
May says
Worked perfect! Started by cooking 1/2 cup dried beans in my 6qt IP first. Then followed the recipe. Used barilla gluten free elbows. Through in some sliced olives. Great leftovers too. I might try subbing one of the bell peppers for diced celery next time. Great recipe!
Nancylynn says
Awesome! Love that you cooked your beans!
Huma says
Hi Nancy,have you publishedmacros for this?
Deanna M Sinift says
I am in the process of making this. It never sealed. It doesn’t seem to have much liquid in the recipe. Has anyone else had this problem. Do I need to add more liquid?
Erin says
This recipe looks delicious, but I am grain free. Do you think I could I use lentil or pea pasta noodles instead? They typically cook like regular gluten-free noodles.
Nancylynn says
Yes!!! We have used them and they cook just fine!!
Stephanie says
Hi! I’m excited to finally be making this tonight! Quick question – I am extremely averse to all bell peppers. I had planned to sub one poblano pepper for one of the bell peppers and was wondering what other veggie you might suggest I sub for the other bell pepper. What do you think about cauliflower or maybe just more zucchini? Thanks for any suggestions! 🙂
Nancylynn says
I think any of that would work great! So sorry that I didn’t see this sooner!
Aimee says
Hi Nancylynn!
How many green containers would you estimate 2 bell peppers to be? I only ask because mine are diced and frozen. Thanks!
Heather says
This was delicious! I’m making it again for a group of 8 and needing to double the recipe. I was wondering if I need to adjust the cooking times, or is it best to make 2 separate batches? Thanks for all your wonderful recipes!
Nancylynn says
This doubles very well!
Jen says
This looks really good, I was wondering could I use a crockpot or should I just stick to the stove? I personally do not own an insta pot. And I was thinking this would be great for an easy meal day! 🙂
Nancylynn says
I haven’t tried this in a crock pot, but I feel like it would just be easier to make it on the stove all in one pot since you are having to cook the meat anyway? Make sense?
Nicole says
So many veggies! We all loved it!
Nancylynn says
Awesome, Nicole! Thank you for taking the time to comment and let me know!❤️
Alexis Blazer says
This was the first 21 Day Fix approved recipe AND my first Insta Pot experience. It was a hit. My household loved it and my fiancé who HATES cooked vegetables actually went back for seconds!!! It was easy, fast, filling and full of flavor! This will be a new staple in our home…thank you!
Nancylynn says
Oh my goodness – that’s AWESOME!! So many veggies in this, too! Great job, Alexis!
Boymom3 says
Recently started 21 day fix and found your website!
Would this work with whole grain pasta? I
Am think this would be. Big hit with my boys.!
Thanks
Nancylynn says
Yes! It will work perfectly!
Heather says
Would this work with whole wheat noodles instead of gluten free? Also does it freeze well?
Nancylynn says
Yes and yes!
Tom H says
This was fantastic. And so many veggies! Thanks for the great recipe.
Nancylynn says
I am thrilled to hear this, Tom!!
Kay says
Back to school today so it was perfect timing for a new recipe! Delicious!! I used chipotle tomatoes for a little extra zing. What size pot do you use?
Nancylynn says
Oooh! Fun on the chipotle tomatoes! I use a 6, 8 or 3…but for this I have mainly used my 6.